Getting ready for UHN's future – Strategic Planning
UHN is a national asset for Canada. The work that we do has an important impact locally, regionally and around the world. This comes from our shared commitment to transform lives and communities through excellence in care, discovery and learning. Now that we have collectively identified what our Purpose, Values and Principles (PVP) are, it's time to turn our attention to the second part of this Area of Focus – Strategy. Our strategic planning process is a great opportunity for us to revisit our mission and cast a new vision. Collectively, we will set new coordinates for our internal GPS. This will be accomplished by establishing long-range goals set on a 2030 time frame which will help us shape the health care system and address the future needs of Canadian society. Once we have set those directional goals we will create shorter-term goals and milestones allowing us to chart a path for the next three years.
Currently, we are at the top of the first inning in our strategic planning process. We will be spending time over the next several months collecting, refining, reassessing and building ideas into what I know will be a fantastic plan that speaks to our identity and societal responsibility. Just like the PVP, it's important that your voice is heard and reflected in this plan, so we will be engaging the entire UHN community, including patients. There will be a number of opportunities to get involved in this process – I will be following up with more details towards the end of February.
Black History Month Opening Ceremony this Wednesday
February is Black History Month and UHN's incredible Black History Month Committee has planned a number of events. I am excited to kick off the celebrations with an opening ceremony taking place this Wednesday, January 25th from 12 – 1:30 p.m. in the DeGasperis Conservatory (4th Floor, TGH). We will be joined by Celina Caesar-Chavannes, MP and Parliamentary Secretary to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who will deliver the keynote address, and Kevin Reel, an ethicist with the Toronto Central Community Care Access Centre. If you can't make it on Wednesday I encourage you to stop by one of the other great events taking place across UHN throughout
February.
Delirium Awareness Week
This week is Delirium Awareness Week at UHN. Delirium is an acute confusional state, where a change in mental abilities occurs suddenly, altering consciousness and disturbance in thinking. About 20% of patients admitted to hospital, and up to 70% of those admitted to the ICU, will develop delirium. At UHN delirium is a medical emergency, posing a risk to patient safety and impacts on a patients' physical and psychological outcomes. Research shows that 40% of hospital acquired delirium may be preventable, so it's critical that we all educate ourselves on the signs and symptoms to identify, prevent, or treat it right away. Watch
this video to learn more about a patient's experience with delirium.
Staff are encouraged to visit a booth or attend an education session this week to learn more about how delirium is identified, prevented and treated. You can access more delirium resources
here.
Peter
RenewingUHN.ca
